UPS Supply Chain Solutions in the United Kingdom - Article Example

1. In this paper, the training and development needs for UPS Supply Chain Solutions in the United Kingdoms will be analysed. Training needs analysisinvolves identifying the current skill gaps in the organisation and the organisation's training needs. There are three steps in training and development needs analysis. The first step is organisation needs analysis, the second step is job/task needs analysis, and the last step is person needs analysis (Gomez-Mejia, Balkin, & Cardy 1998, p. 236-260). In organisation needs analysis, the strategy of the organisation is identified. The strategy of UPS Supply Chain Solutions, as stated in the UPS plan of action are to leverage on technology to create new services and to strengthen its operations and networks, attract and develop the most talented people, continually study customers' behavior, anticipate their needs, and design its products and services to exceed their expectations, create a culture of innovation that leads to sustainable growth, and maintain an environment that enables it to treat every customer as if they are the only one (United Parcel Service n.d. a). In job/task analysis, the focus is on the needs of each group or department. Under the strategy of leveraging on technology to create new services, the information systems department needs to be trained in developing novel online tracking programs (United Parcel Service n.d. b), the customer service department has to be trained in how to use the tracking programs developed by the information systems department, and the finance department has to be trained in billing applications that generate accurate and timely billing to the customers. Under the strategy of attracting and developing the most talented people, supervisors of all groups have to be trained in developing and mentoring employees. With regard to the strategy of customer focus, the customer service needs to be trained in aspects of customer service and the information systems department has to be trained in developing applications that enable the easy manipulation of customer information by the rest of the company to understand customers' needs. Lastly, in alignment with the strategy of building an innovative culture, training should focus on aspects of risk-taking, decision-making, and entrepreneurial attitudes. In person needs analysis, the training and development needs of each employee is identified. For example, the information system developer for external applications may need to have knowledge of Java programming to develop the tracking programs, whereas the information system developer for internal applications may need to have database programming knowledge to develop applications that would enable the manipulation of customer data by the rest of the organisation. The accounts payables finance staff might need to be trained in using the accounts payables module of the billing program, while the accounts receivables finance staff might need to be trained in using the accounts receivables module of the billing program. Depending on the prior training of the supervisors, some might be lacking in performance appraisal skills, while others might be lacking in motivational skills. The same applies for customer service personnel. Some might find telephone skills more appropriate, while others might find computer skills more relevant. 2. The primary stimulus for change remains those factors in the external environment, including the political, economic, socio-cultural, technological, environmental, and legal environment (Cook 2004, p. 34-35). Political influences include government or constitutional policies that may affect the organisation. For instance, the recent expansion of EU boundaries may influence certain organisations (Cook 2004, p. 35). Economic influences are concerned with the economy. Inflation has an effect, for example, on levels of spending. Socio-cultural influences include such factors as class, age and gender as well as issues such as culture and diversity. For example, the drinking habits worldwide are different (Cook 2004, p. 35). Technological influences include the use of the Internet, advances in mobile phones, Bluetooth and wireless networks, data management, customer relationship management systems, etc which may have an impact on the organisation (Cook 2004, p. 35-36). Many businesses are affected today by environmental issues. The public is now more aware and conscious of corporate social responsibility than in the past. Organisations such as BOC and ICI have been affected by adverse publicity relating to environmental issues (Imperial Chemical Industries Plc n.d. a, p. 151; Imperial Chemical Industries Plc n.d. b; The BOC Group n.d., p. 27, 30, 31). The legal environment also has an influence on organisations. The Working Time Directive, Paternity Leave and Minimum Wage regulations are examples of this. In certain industries there are legal constraints imposed by regulatory or watchdog bodies (Cook 2004, p. 36). The beer industry is one sector that has been impacted by changes in the far external environment. Legislation exists in various nations to curb the advertising and excessive consumption of alcohol (Camerra-Rowe 2005, p. 5, 14, 15). Examples include control on drunk driving, operation hours of pubs, advertising, distribution, and even import controls, such as in Sweden (Camerra-Rowe 2005, p. 13-15; Diageo n.d., p. 9). However, the primary motivator for how change is accomplished resides with the people within the organisation, including leadership (Cook 2004, p. 7-8; Sims 2002, p. 39), culture (Sims 2002, p. 39), and employee involvement (Sims 2002, p. 41-42) To bring about change, leaders need to have the ability to influence others within the organisation. Leaders need to be aware of power bases, understand sources of power, recognise levers of influence during change, develop strategies for influence, and gain buy-in from stakeholders. For example, Jack Welch, former Chairman of General Electric, is acclaimed to be a good leader in change management. He led his companies through constant change and renewal, skillfully recognising power bases and developing strategies for influence (Cook 2004, p. 7-8). Of course, before there is leadership, management must first take ownership of change (Sims 2002, p. 36). Another motivator of change is a culture in which managers and employees are receptive to new ideas. Often the rules of conduct and practice thought to be behind an organisation's earlier success are codified into rigid operating standards. Resistance arises when the employees or middle managers feel they are doing well and consider the new programme as an implicit criticism of their efforts (Sims 2002, p. 39). Another aspect of culture is the sense of urgency of the organisation regarding change (Sims 2002, p. 40). Lastly, another important motivator is employee involvement. To minimise employee resistance, employees should be involved in change efforts and linked to one another. Change communities should be created and open dialogues should be encouraged (Sims 2002, p. 42). References Camerra-Rowe, Pamela 2005, Trouble Brewing' EU and Member State Public Health Policy and the European Beer Industry. Retrieved September 3, 2006 from http://aei.pitt.edu/5715/01/2005-Camerra-Rowe.pdf Cook, Sarah 2004, Change Management Excellence: Using the Four Intelligences for Successful Organizational Change, Kogan Page, London. Diageo n.d., Business Description. Retrieved September 3, 2006 from http://72.14.203.104/search'q=cache:mp4liLIeBvMJ:www.diageo.com/NR/rdonlyres/13055943-527B-49CA-9D49-498EB1802053/0/ARbusinessdescription.pdf+guinness+beer+annual+report&hl=zh-TW&ct=clnk&cd=6 Gomez-Mejia, LR, Balkin, DB & Cardy, RL 1998, Managing Human Resources, Prentice Hall, International. Imperial Chemical Industrials Plc n.d. a, Annual Report and Accounts 2005. Retrieved September 3, 2006, from http://www.ici.com/ici-ir/download/Financial_Reports/2005_annual_report.pdf Imperial Chemical Industries Plc n.d. b, Sustainability Review. Retrieved September 3, 2006 from http://www.ici.com/ICIPLC/ici-she/2005/pdf/ICI_sustainability_review_2005.pdf Sims, RR, 2002, Changing the Way We Manage Change, Greenwood Publishing, USA. The BOC Group n.d., Annual Report and Accounts 2005: Social, Environmental and Ethical Performance. Retrieved September 3, 2006, from http://www.boc.com/investors/annual_and_quarterly_reports/2005/report/social_environmental.pdf United Parcel Service n.d. a, The UPS Charter. Retrieved September 3, 2006, from http://investor.shareholder.com/ups/governance/documentdisplay.cfm'DocumentID=558 United Parcel Service n.d. b, Contact UPS Supply Chain Solutions. Retrieved September 3, 2006, from http://www.ups-scs.com/contact/#tracking Read More